A participant is timed in a drill at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009.

FILE - In this Dec. 6, 2009, file photo, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) looks up as he returns from having his hand checked during the first quarter against the Miami Dolphins in an NFL football game in Miami. Don't be so quick to pin all the Patriots problems on Brady. There's plenty of blame to go around as New England fights to make the playoffs.

I know all of you NFL fanatics out there are suffering withdrawal. Not getting your daily fix of hard NFL news has been tough on you.

It’s OK, take a deep breath, you’ll be fine.

But please, whatever you do, don’t put too much stock in the NFL combine. It begins Wednesday in Indianapolis.

Yes, I know you’re psyched to discover how many times Nebraska defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh can bench press 225 pounds. You’re curious to see how fast Pat Paschall of North Dakota State runs the 40-yard dash. Aren’t you?

But please, don’t sit watching the NFL Network’s coverage. Go to a movie, read a book, take your wife out to dinner.

Because, seriously, the combine is overblown.

Don’t believe me? Check out what Sports Illustrated NFL guru Peter King wrote earlier this week. King reported that one NFL executive has his team’s draft board is “90 percent set” before the players go through the mental and physical gauntlet in Indy.

And please don’t believe that all of that poking, prodding and timing uncovers the best football players. Case in point: New England quarterback Tom Brady.

At the 2000 NFL scouting combine, Brady ran the 40-yard dash in 5.23 seconds, recorded a vertical jump of 24.5 inches and saw a bunch of quarterbacks leap ahead of him on teams’ draft lists. He ended up being selected in the sixth round, with the 199th overall pick. Then he led the Patriots to four Super Bowls, winning three times.

Trivia time

This one is for hardcore draftniks only. What player holds the NFL combine record for must reps in the 225-pound bench press test? (Answer below)

“I stood on the podium after winning a gold medal in 1984, and it occurred to me, ‘I have no idea who I am anymore.’ I’ve seen so many people rise to the top. And it destroys them.” – Former Olympic skater Scott Hamilton in Mark Kiszla’s latest column.

Reader’s rant

“Too bad (Jim) Armstrong decided to perpetuate the myth that the Rockies ‘let (Yorvit) Torrealba walk.’ They offered Torrealba more money than either (Chris) Iannetta or (Miguel) Olivo over the next two years, but Yorvit either didn’t want to be here or has a brain-dead agent. I know the Rockies declined their option on Torrealba, but that was a no-brainer. Why would you pay Bengie Molina-like money to a guy that’s not in his class either offensively or behind the plate? I wish Torrealba well in S.D., but it’s not the Rockies’ fault he’s gone. — North Sider posting on The Post’s story about Iannetta.

Blog spot

Check out Tom Kensler’s take on why the Big 12 should be seriously considered as the best men’s college basketball conference in the country.

In case you missed it

A lot of baseball fans might not be satisfied with Mark McGwire’s apology for using performance-enhancing drugs. But Hank Aaron, whom many consider the legitimate all-time home run king, is ready to give Big Mac a pass.

“I would have loved to have seen him do it a long time ago, but since he did it, I think that he himself will tell you right now he’s able to sleep at night and he’s able to look at his teammates,” Aaron told The Associated Press.

This day in sports

On this day in 1988, a committee of Chicago alderman voted 7-2 to allow the Cubs to install lights at venerable Wrigley Field.

Trivia answer

The record for bench press at the NFL combine is 51 reps of 225 pounds, set by defensive tackle Justin Ernest of Eastern Kentucky in 1999 (according to nfldraftscouts.com).

Four assistant basketball coaches at Division I schools and a top Adidas executive were among 10 people charged Tuesday with crimes including bribery and fraud as part of a wide-ranging federal investigation into corruption in college basketball.

CenturyLink, the telecommunications company that ended its sponsorship agreement with Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall because of his protests during the national anthem last year, said it will not terminate its agreement with current client Emmanuel Sanders.